RHS Malvern Spring Festival

Expert Advice at RHS Malvern Spring Festival

We’re always delighted to welcome a number of expert guests to the RHS Malvern Spring Festival. Our experts are on hand to share their knowledge of gardening, food and floristry with you. Find out who is joining us each day of the festival below.

Experts Joining Us At RHS Malvern Spring Festival

Raymond Blanc

Saturday

French born chef Raymond Blanc opened his first restaurant in 1977 and his renowned Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons Hotel and restaurant 10 years later. Celebrating over 30 years, it has retained two Michelin stars and also houses The Raymond Blanc Cookery School. Raymond is a best selling author. His TV series include Kew on a Plate and How to Cook Well.

Chris Beardshaw

Thu Only

A celebrated Designer, Plantsman and Broadcaster Chris Beardshaw has clocked up over 30 years’ experience in the horticultural world. Known for his BBC television and radio work Chris is also a well-loved speaker and lecturer and is the author of 4 books. He is a long-standing panel member of BBC Radio 4’s Gardeners’ Question Time and his broadcasting experience spans 18 years including major BBC2 series The Flying Gardener, Gardeners’ World & Hidden Gardens. He has designed public schemes for English Heritage, National Trust, Great Ormond Street Hospital, Le Manoir aux Quat’Saison, The Royal Parks, Jodrell Bank, alongside his show garden work.

Chris Collins

Thu, Fri, Sat & Sun

Resident Blue Peter gardener for nine years, in 2008 Chris helped create the Silver medal-winning Chelsea Show Garden Marshalls Garden That Kids Really Want. He runs his own design and soft landscape company and has appeared in Turf Wars, Garden Challenge and Gardeners’ World TV shows.

Lee Connelly

Sat & Sun

Lee Connelly, The Skinny Jean Gardener, from BBC Blue Peter is on a mission to create memories with the family out in the garden. Inspiring the family with weekly gardening podcasts and Youtube uploads, Lee believes that no matter how big your garden we can all be gardeners

Alys Fowler

Thu, Fri, Sat & Sun

Alys is an award-winning journalist and passionate gardener. She is a regular presenter on BBC Gardeners’ World. Her BBC series, The Edible Garden aired on BBC2 in 2010 accompanied by her book The Edible Garden.

Carol Klein

Fri, Sat & Sun

Gardening expert Carol has appeared on Gardeners’ World since 1989, and presented programmes including Carol Klein's Plant Odysseys, Grow Your Own Veg and Life in a Cottage Garden, following a year in her garden. She has written numerous books and writes a column for The Guardian.

Jekka McVicar

Thu & Fri

Organic herb expert Jekka established Jekka’s Herb Farm in 1987, which now stocks the largest collection of culinary herbs in the UK – more than 500 cultivars. She has been awarded 62 RHS Gold medals for her organic herb displays, and has written several successful books. She was awarded the Victoria Medal of Honour this year.

Jonathan Moseley

Thu, Fri, Sat & Sun

The floral expert from the BBC’s The Big Allotment Challenge, Jonathan is an international demonstrator of floristry, based in Derbyshire. A National Demonstrator for the National Association of Flower Arrangement Societies, Jonathan is renowned for creating large-scale floral designs with speed, efficiency and entertainment, bringing floral theatre to a whole new level.

Valerie Singleton

Thu Only

During her career Valerie was one of the top voice-over artists in television commercials, worked as an actress for five years in the theatre, fronted several television advertising campaigns and then became a household name presenting much loved television programmes including Blue Peter. 2018 is the 60th Anniversary of Blue Peter and Valerie, as the most iconic of all the female Blue Peter presenters, will be featuring in many of the live events and films that will be celebrating the most popular children’s TV programme, ever.

Her life’s work has been honoured twice, firstly by “This is Your Life”, which the public watched avidly and then being bestowed with an OBE, by Her Majesty the Queen.

Joe Swift

Sat & Sun

Joe studied garden design at The English Gardening School at the Chelsea Physic Garden, while setting up his own landscaping company. A presenter on BBC Gardeners’ World since 1998, Joe regularly helps present the BBC coverage of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show. He is also a designer and writer.

Alan Titchmarsh

Fri Only

A gardener since he was 15, Alan is a stalwart of Gardeners’ World, Ground Force and How To Be A Gardener TV shows. He has written more than 40 gardening books and, in 2004, received the RHS’s highest accolade, the Victoria Medal of Honour, for exceptional contribution to horticulture.

Valentine Warner

Sat & Sun

Valentine Warner is a cook, food writer and broadcaster. Training originally as a portrait painter he went on to become a chef in London’s kitchens for five years before running his own catering company.

Saying the right thing at the right time Valentine suddenly found himself on television, where his deep love of cooking, nature and travel has seen him make seven series and contribute to others. His appearances have spanned a few channels BBC, UKTV and Fox International and written articles have been published for a variety of magazines and newspapers. He loves radio, an opportunity to describe things pictorially whilst also bringing a strong sense of storytelling to his food generally.

Valentine has written four cookery books, three of which he illustrated - What to Eat Now, What to Eat Now More Please, The Good Table and What to Eat Next. He would generally prefer to be found in a field rather than an office and is most likely to be holding tongs a fishing rod or a mossy stick.

Jon Wheatley

Thu, Fri, Sat & Sun

Garden designer and grower, Jon has won 14 Chelsea Gold medals. He manages Stonebarn Landscapes - a design, landscaping and garden maintenance company based near Bristol. His 2014 RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show Garden was rebuilt as a community garden in Letchworth.

Theatre Hosts At RHS Malvern Spring Festival

James Alexander-Sinclair

Theatre Host - Every Day

Garden designer James is an award-winning writer and has designed gardens around the world. He writes for Gardeners' World magazine and has been part of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show BBC coverage since 2008. He helped set up the Moscow Flower Show in 2012.

Mark Diacono

Theatre Host - Every Day

Mark has a long association with Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall’s River Cottage series, having led the gardening team there. A food writer, grower and photographer, Mark also won the André Simon Food Book of the Year Award in 2015 for A Year at Otter Farm, based on his Devon smallholding.

Martin Fish

Theatre Host - Every Day

Gardening expert Martin regularly broadcasts on BBC radio and has appeared on TV programmes including Simply Gardening with Coronation Street’s Thelma Barlow. He has written for Garden News, Gardeners’ World and Garden Answers and ran the Harrogate Flower Show for five years. Now Garden Advisor to RHS Garden Harlow Carr, Martin also runs his own garden advisory service.

Reg Moule

Theatre Host - Every Day

One of Worcestershire's best loved gardening personalities, radio broadcaster Reg has received five garden radio broadcasting awards from the Garden Media Guild. He manages David's Nurseries near Worcester, and received the RHS long service medal in 2014 to mark 42 years in the horticultural trade.